Thursday, 21 January 2010

Spot the BNP Publicity Stunt (I)

The BNP leadership seems to believe that any publicity is good publicity, because it gives their noxious racist party 'brand recognition'.

They believe that this 'brand recognition' is all that is required for people to vote for them in the coming general and council elections.

Working on the conviction that the British people are too stupid to make up their own minds about who to vote for, the BNP has embarked upon a programme of publicity stunts designed to keep their name in the media.

This blog will try to identify each of those foolish, unnecessary, time-wasting, sometimes embarrassing, always self-promoting publicity stunts as they appear in the weeks ahead. Your suggestions are welcome.

The British National Party is so concerned about fraud at the general election that it intends to place its own seals on ballot boxes. The party fears its opponents will seek to sabotage its aim of winning a seat in Parliament for the first time. So it has invoked the Ballot Act of 1872, which allows candidates to put their own seals on boxes, in an effort to avert tampering. Independent election officials always seal boxes when polls close.

BNP spokesman John Walker said his party would apply its own seals in the London seats of Barking - where leader Nick Griffin is running - and Dagenham and Rainham. The BNP hopes to do well against incumbent Labour MPs in both contests.

Mr Walker claimed there had been suggestions in the past that boxes had been opened and BNP votes spoiled or removed, or other parties' votes added. He said:

We know it happens. We just cannot prove it. It is a shame we have to invoke these things. But some council staff are in the pocket of the local Labour party and we suspect they would use any means to tamper with votes.

A Labour spokesman said:

We are confident that when the general election comes the British people will clearly reject the disgusting politics of the BNP. That will be because their politics are vile and divisive not because of any bizarre paranoia about ballot boxes.

From UNISON press release:

Commenting on the British National Party’s allegations over voting sabotage, and plans to put their own ballot seals on boxes, Dave Prentis, UNISON’s General Secretary, said:

It is outrageous for the BNP to attack the morality and integrity of the Local Government workers, who handle the ballot boxes. It is a mark of a paranoid and desperate party. They need to face facts – they are not getting any votes because the British people are not swallowing their racist views.